Dustin Spagnola is a contemporary visual artist and painter who creates murals and fine art. He has shown and created work in NYC, Miami, New Orleans, Richmond, Atlanta, Detroit, the District of Columbia, Nepal, Japan and in his home, Asheville, NC. Commissions available.

The Beauty of the Actual Reality

The video below is a great profile of an artist in Western North Carolina talking about the value of art representing an actual moment. I love this quote from his clip:

“[understanding art is about] the beauty of the actual reality of what’s happening. Things being un-mediated with no one telling you what to do or what’s important or what has value, but rather deciding for yourself and knowing that when you throw paint against a wall, just when you throw paint, the mark that it leaves, it’s an impression of an action, a moment, of a real lived experience that actually happened.”

The two parts that I love about this quote is that simple line, “the actual reality of what’s happening” because I think that nicely sums up what so many curious minds come to TMI in search of, and also the concept that anything that we create, through art or actions or words or silence, any of those things leaves an impression of the moment that it took place in. That is, in my mind at least, the root of mindfulness…to be aware that we are always leaving not just a mark, but an impression. Really lovely stuff.